Molly’s Cauliflower Shawarma Tacos

These cauliflower tacos are out of this world! Spicy zhoug, fried onions, roasted cauliflower, and tahini sauce unite to make a flavorful, fun meal.

I love these tacos so much that I wish I had thought of the idea myself. I absolutely love cauliflower tacos (there’s a delicious recipe in our cookbook on page 99)… but tahini? in tacos?! That’s something that only the queen of tahini, Molly Yeh, dreams up.

This recipe comes from Molly on the Range, and I highly recommend it for your taco Thursday. Spicy cauliflower is roasted until crispy, and then topped with crunchy onions, creamy tahini sauce, and a sauce called Zhoug, which I’ve never heard of. In Molly’s book, I learned that it’s a Middle Eastern sauce that’s like a spicier version of pesto.

These cauliflower tacos are really easy to make, especially if you make the tahini sauce and the Zhoug sauce ahead of time. The tacos themselves are really simple to put together but are so so flavorful.

And now about the book! Like me, Molly grew up in the Chicago suburbs. Unlike me, she is a talented musician, married a beet farmer, and is absolutely hilarious. Her cookbook is that rare breed of cookbook where I not only drool over the recipes and photos, but I will sit down and read every word of her wonderful writing. Her journey from the burbs to the big city to living on a farm is not only entertaining but inspiring. Get this book!

pictured above: a recipe called My Ex’s Meatless Balls 🙂

pictured below: this super cute Macaroni & Cheese Chart

4.9 from 15 reviews

Molly's Cauliflower Shawarma Tacos

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

50 mins

 

Recipe for Cauliflower Tacos from Molly On The Range, reprinted with permission.

Author: Jeanine Donofrio

Recipe type: Main dish

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• ¼ cup olive oil
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1½ teaspoons vegetable broth base (I skipped this)
• 1½ pounds cauliflower florets
• 1 medium onion
• 2 tablespoons flavorless oil
• 8 flour tortillas (6-inch)
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Tahini Sauce:

• ¼ cup tahini
• 3 tablespoons cold water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• kosher salt and black pepper

Zhoug:

• 5 jalapenos (I used 2)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 cup flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup cilantro coarsely chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• black pepper
• ¼ cup olive oil

Instructions

1. Make the Tahini Sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the tahini, water and lemon juice until the mixture thickens. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
2. Make the Zhoug: In a food processor, combine the jalapeños, garlic, parsley, cilantro, cumin, coriander, cayenne, salt, a few turns of pepper, and the olive oil and blend until it's the consistency of pesto, adding more olive oil if desired. Store in the fridge for up to 2 days or spoon into ice cube trays, freeze, and thaw as needed.
3. Make the tacos: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. In a large bowl, mix together the olive oil, salt, garam masala, curry powder, and broth base. Add the cauliflower and toss to coat. Spread the cauliflower onto the baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until browned and crispy, 30 to 40 minutes.
5. Thinly slice three-quarters of the onion. Dice the remaining one-quarter and set aside for topping. In a skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the sliced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 10 minutes.
6. Warm the tortillas. Assemble the tacos with cauliflower, fried onions, tahini sauce, raw chopped onion, cllantro and zhoug (if using).

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